Cartridge loader for a tubular magazine



April 25, 1961 E. sKoFF 2,981,024

CARTRIDGE LOADER FOR A TUBULAR MAGAZINE Filed Oct. 22, 1959 2520 6052 W//l//l/z IN VEN TOR.

'United States 1%' CARTRIDGE LOADER Fon A TUBULAR MAGAZINE This invention relates to a device for holding and storing a plurality yof cartridges and for loading the cartridges automatically yinto a tubular gun magazine. vAlthough this invention is particularly adapted for use with small-caliber rie cartridges, it is to be understood Vthat such device may ybe employed to store and load cartridges of all types Iand sizes. The term gun as used herein is intended to include any portable rearm including but not limited to-rifles, pistols and Shotguns.

In many repeating-'type guns, cartridges are carried in a tubular magazine which is attached to and disposed immediately below the gun barrel. The cartridges 'are fed from this magazine to the firing chamber automatically upon the ejection of the previous shell from the firing chamber. Such magazines arerof limited capacity and quite often have to be reloaded in the field by the hunter or marksman. Usually, the operator of the gun will carry the cartridges vloose in his pocket and Y will manually load the magazinefone cartridge ata time through an opening in the cylindrical wall of the maga-l zine, or in some guns through an opening at the end of the magazine. This .procedure is not only time-consuming and awkward, particularly in cold weather, but also safely stored and from which the cartridges may be easily removed.

It is another object of this invention 'to provide a dey vice for 'storing a plurality 'of cartridges and "for permitting the direct, rapid and automatic-loading of a'gun magazine.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a compact cartridge-storing device from which the car- "tridges can ybe quickly, 'easily and directly loadedV into ried by the operator in'hispocket and which will maintain the cartridges free from contact with dirt, lint, and other objects which might tend to foul the cartridge -in the tiring chamber.

Other objects may be seen, `aud'a fuller Vunderstand- `in`g-of-the invention may be had by Areferring to the -following description and claims taken in conjunction l with the accompanying drawing.

. within the relatively small container.

A device constructed in accordance with this 'invention provides a convenient case for storing cartridges and for loading cartridges into an elongate, tubular magazine. an elongate, hollow container of substantially rectangular cross-section and open at one end.

A guideway within the container is adapted to slidably accommodate a column of substantially parallel cartridges. Slidably mounted within the guideway for movement toward and away from the open end of the container is a follower having a handle portion and a cartridge engaging portion. A spring means, whichis preferably mounted on a guide resiliently urges the follower toward the open end of the container such that when cartridges are disposed within the guideway, the follower will Ybe constantly in contact with the f i'rs't loaded cartridge to urge that cartridge, and those in the column ahead of it, out of the container. A manually operable means preferably in the form of a trigger lever is mounted adjacent the open end of the container and is movable into and out of the path of the cartridges within the guideway. This lever thus regulates` the discharge of cartridges from the container. Means preferably in the form of a hook is provdedadjacent the open end of the container `for movably attaching the container to the end of the tubular gun magazine.

One of the features of this invention is the construction and cooperative arrangement of the follower, the spring guide, and the spring which permit the maximum utilization of space Within the container and permit a large number of 'cartridges to. be stored in a column The follower is of .balanced construction, thus eliminating jamming due Ito possible twisting of the follower within the container.

'Other important lfeatures are 'the simple iand effective means for attaching the container to'the tubular gun magazine, and the novel construction of the triggery lever.

With reference to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a device constructed in accordance with this invention, illustrating thel manner in which the device may be attached to the cylindrical gun magazine;

Fig. 2 is a side-elevation view of the device illustrated in Fig. l showing in solid lines the position of the follower handle portion when the device is filled with cartridges and showing in dotted lines the position of 'this handle portion when the device is empty;

Fig. 3 is a sectional-elevation view of the device showing the interior construction thereof and the manner in which the cartridges are held therein;

Fig. 4' is a bottom-plan view of the device',

Fig. 5 is an enlarged elevation view of the device looking into the forward or open end Aof the container;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view of the device taken substantially along 6-6 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 7 is a sectional viewof the device taken substantially along line 7,-7 of Fig. 3. v

.The device 10, constructed in accordance with this invention, is adapted to hold a plurality of cartridges 12 in Va column, i.e., in parallel relationship, and to selectively, sequentially and automatically transfer these cartridges to a tubular magazine 14 of a gun. In the illustrated embodiment, the cartridges are for a small caliber rifle. .Adjacent the base or cap of each cartridge is a lip 12a which is adapted for engagement to holdthe cartridge case in position in the firing chamber and to implement the ejection of the case from the g'un after the cartridge has been tired.

The tubular magazine 14 is attachedto 'and lis disposed under the barrel 16 of the gun, and Aa plurality of shell may be stored within this magazine. `li/lagazines of this type are usually `charged through an vaperture 154e One embodiment of this invention includes l guideway.

container walls and lies within a plane perpendicular to the planes of strips 34 and 36, spanning approximately one-half the width of the interior of the container 18, as best illustrated in Fig. 7. The transverse strip 3S is preferably longitudinally coextensive with strips 34and 36 and is spaced below strip 36 a distance slightly greater than the thickness of lip 12a of the cartridge 12. It may thus be seen that cartridges may be inserted into the open end of the container 1S within the guideway, the main body of each of the cartridges extending between parallel An elongate transverse strip 38 is formed on one of the strips 34 and 36, the base of each of the cartridges rest` ing upon transverse strip 38, and portions of the lip 12a of each of vthe cartridges being disposed below the strips 34 and 36. As best seen in Fig. 3, the cartridges are are aligned in generally parallel relationship within the 'It is not necessary for the strips 34 and 36 to extend widthwise (vertically in Fig. 7) the full height of the interior of the container above the transverse strip 38. The width of the strips need be only sufficient to maintain the alignment of the cartridges in a column.

The transverse strip 38 is preferably disposed below the top of the container a suicient distance to permit the accommodation of various `lengths of the same caliber shells, such as, for example, .22 caliber longs and.22 caliber shorts. If the container 18 is `formed of plastic, all portions thereof, including the guideway strips 34, 36 and 38 may be molded integrally.

The follower 22 preferably consists of three portions. An elongate block p ortion 40, having a counterbored aperzof container y the pressure is transmitted directly to the adjacent block portion 40 and thence to the spring 24. With the car- `tridges in position within the guideway and the guideway blocked, as will be more fully hereinafter described, the compressive force of the spring against the block portion 40 is transmitted directly to the adjacent cartridge-engag` ing portion 44.

The trigger lever 26 is mounted adjacent the forward end 20 of the container on a pin 48. 0n one end of this lever is formed a nger plate 50. At the opposite end of the lever is a curved tip 52, best seen in Fig. 6, The lever is pivotally movable about pin 48 between a rst position in which curved tip 52 is disposed within the guideway in the path of cartridges 12 and the cartridgeengaging portion 44 of the follower, and a second posh tion toone side of or out of the guideway, wherein it no longer is disposed in the path of the cartridges 12 and the follower portion 44. Asbest seen in Fig. 5 in its first position, the curved tip 52 of the lever extends across approximately one-third of the width of the guideway. In the second position of the lever 26 the cartridges are free to move out of the container through the open end 20, the force moving the cartridges being that applied by spring 24 acting upon the follower. `A flat spring 54 attached to trigger lever 26 urges the leverin a direction about pin 48 toward the rst-mentioned position in -whichthe curved tip 52 extends into the guideway and Y blocks the path of the cartridges 12 and the portion 44 ture 42 therein, is slidably movable along the length of l. the container in the space between the bottom ofthe container and transverse guideway deiining strip 35. The block portion 40 is preferably of rectangular transverse `of the follower. Thus, in its normal position, the trigger lever 26` blocks the movement of cartridges from the guideway in` the Vcontainer 18. Spring 54 is relatively rsti and a substantial `force must be applied to finger plate 50 in order to pivot the lever to its discharge position.

pressure to portion ,l I l l firing chamber.

l, In order to attach ,the device to the end 4of the tubular gun magazine, adjacent the aperture 14a therein, a metal hooklike projection v28 is provided adjacent the forward Y 'endZtl of the container. This projection is substantially L-shaped, having a flat portion 58 which is attached to and extends outwardly from the open end of the container and lies approximately in the same plane as the transverse strip 38. Integral with and extendingdownwarrdly from flat portion 58 is curved end portion 60. This portion 60 is uniformly spaced outwardly from the concave portion of the container forward end 20 below the opening therein, the spacing being slightly greater than the wall thickness of the cylindrical magazine 14. As ,mayjbest be seen in Fig. 3, when the curved portion 60 is inserted within the aperture in the cylindrical magazine. 14, the forward end 20 of the container will engage theexterior magazine and the flat portion 58 of the projection will rest upon the aperture defining portions of the magazine. The device may thus be removably mounted on the magazine with the opening therein opposite the magazine aperture so that as the cartridges exit from the device, they are immediately deposited within the magazine. l

thereon as described. Pressure is then applied to linger platerSt) against the resistance of flat spring 54, and the tip 52 of the trigger lever 26 is moved out of the guideway. The cartridges are permitted to move forwardly through the open end of the container and across the at portion 58 of the hook-like projection 28 under the force of spring 24 acting against the follower 22. The cartridges sequentially drop from the flat portion 58 into the magazine 14. 'Pressure is maintained on the finger plate of thel trigger lever 26 until the magazine 14 is filled or until the desired number of cartridges are deposited in the magazine, whereupon the linger plate is released and the curved tip of the trigger lever 26 is again returned by flat spring 54 to its normal or blocking position in the way of the oncoming cartridges. In order to refill the device, the follower is moved to its rearward position against the resistance of coil springy 24 by finger-applied pressure to the finger grip portion 46. The follower is heldin this position and pressure'is'ap` plied to the linger plate 50 of the trigger lever 26 moving the tip 52 out of the guideway. The cartridges are then placed individually into the container with the lip `12a of each Ycartridge disposed downwardly. When the desired number of cartridges are loaded into the device 10, the trigger lever 26 is released as is the finger-grip portion 46 of the follower. As anl alternative method of loading, the cartridges maybe yforced into the device through the opening in the'end 20. The finger lever 26, ,because of the curvatureof its tip 52, may be forced pose a lateral recess 62 is provided in the slot k32 n the' bottom of the container 18 as illustrated in'Figs. 3 and 4. This recess should be sufficiently large to permit the insertion of a match stick or other small rod 63. The stick or rod if inserted within this recess ahead of the handle portion of the follower vwill prevent the forward movement ofthe follower under the urging ofthe compressed spring 24. When the device has been loaded,y the `stick or roclv may be removed. Of course, many other well-known and more complex locking arrangenients may beemployed if desired.

` The cartridges may be stored in the container until they are loaded into the magazine, and the container will `keep them adequately free from contact with dust, dirt,

lint, or other contaminants which might tend to foul the The cartridges not only are conven- .-iently stored in, this `very easily carried package, but they are Vready for immediate loadinginto the magazineof the gun. It will be apparent that a number of these devices 'may be loaded in leisure lin the warmth of the operators house and the loadingof the magazine in the field may be done quicklytand without the operators having to ,remove his gloves.

`Although the invention has been described with a certain degree vof particularity, it is understood that the present disclosure has been made only by way of 4example and that many modifications and changes in various details may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope ofthe invention, as hereinafter claimed.

What is claimed is:

l. A device -for loading cartridges into an elongate tubular magazine, said device `comprising an elongate hollow container having an open end and having aguideway therein adapted to slidably accommodate a column of generally parallel cartridges, a guide rod mounted within said container and extending substantially the length of the container parallel to said guideway, a cartridgeengaging follower mounted for longitudinal movementwithin said guideway toward and away from said open end, a compression spring coiled about said guide rod and acting between a` portion of said container opposite said open end and said follower to urge said follower toward said open end, manually operable means mounted adjacent the open end of said container and movable into and out 'of the path of said follower to regulate the dischargeof cartridges from said container, and means on said container adjacent said open end for removably attaching said container to the magazine, whereby the cartridges may be sequentially discharged from the container into the magazine.

2'.V A device for loading cartridges into an elongate tubular magazine, said device comprising an elongate hollow container having an open end 'and having a substantially T-shaped guideway adapted to 'slidably `accomtoward and away from said open end, said follower` havling a vcartridge-engaging portion extending within said guideway andv a block portion disposed between said guideway and the one side of said vcontainer and slidably mounted on said-guide bar, a compression spring coiled .about said guide bar and acting between a portion of said container opposite said open end and the block portion of said follower to urge said follower toward said open end, manually operable means mounted adjacent the, open one end of said container and'movable into and out of the path of said follower to regulate the `discharge of cartridges from said container, and means onr said container adjacent the open end thereof for removably attaching said container to the magazine, wheref by the cartridges may be sequentially discharged from'the j container into the magazine. v

3. A device for loading cartridges into an'elongate -tubular magazine, said device comprising an elongate hollow container having an open end and having a substantially T-shaped guideway adapted to slidably accomi modate a column of generally parallel cartridges, a guide bar mounted within said container and extendngsubstantially parallel to said guideway, between said nguideway 'and one side of said container, a follower slidably `mounted for longitudinal movement within said container toward and away from said open end, said follower having a cartridge-engaging portion extending Awith said guideway and a block portion having a counterbored apervture therein, said block portion disposed between said guideway and the one side rof said'container and slidiably mounted on said guide bar, a compression spring coiled about-said guide bar and acting between a porv,tion of said container opposite said open end and the bottom of the counterbore in the block' portion of said :follower to urge` said follower toward said open end, 'manually operable means mounted adjacent said open end of saidcontainer and movable into and out of the path of said follower to regulate the discharge of cartridges from said container, and means on said container adjacent said open endfor removably attaching said container to the magazine, whereby the cartridges may be sequentially discharged from the container into the magazine.

4. The structure recited in claim 3 wherein the depth of the counterbore in the block portion of said follower is greater than half the length ofthe coil spring when fully compressed, whereby the follower is permitted to move a maximum longitudinal distance within said container. i -5. A device for loading cartridges into anelongate tubular magazine, said device comprising an elongate hollow container having an open end and having a longitudinally extending slot therein, said container having a substantially T-shaped guideway adapted to sldably accommodate a column of generally parallel cartridges; a guide bar mounted within said container and extending substantially parallel to said guideway between said guideway and one side of said container; a follower sldably mounted for longitudinal movement within said container toward and. away from said open end, said follower havinga cartridge-engaging portion extending within said guideway, a block portion disposed between said guide-` way and the one side of said container and sldably mounted on said guide bar, and a protuberant portion extending outwardly through theslt insaid container, whereby said follower may be manually moved away from the open end of said container; a compression spring -coiled about said guide bar and actingbetween a por- `tion opposite the open one end of said container and the block portion of said follower to urge said follower 1 toward said open end, manually operablemeans mounted adjacent said open end of said container and movable into and out of the path of said follower to regulate the `discharge of cartridges from said container, and `means on said container adjacent said open end for removably attaching said container to the magazine, whereby the cartridges may be sequentially discharged from'the container into the magazine.

6. A device for loading cartridges into an` elongate tubular magazine, said device comprising an elongate hollow container having an open end and having a longitudinally extending slot therein along one side, said container having a substantially T-shaped guideway adapted to sldably accommodate a column of generally parallel cartridges; a guide rod mounted within said con- `tainer and extending substantially Vparallel tosaid guideway between said guideway and the one side of said container; a follower sldably mounted for longitudinal i movement within said container toward and away from said open end, said follower havinga cartridge-engaging portion extending within said guideway, lan apertured counterbored block portion disposed between said guideway and the one side of said container and sldably mounted on said guide bar, and a protuberant portion extending outwardly from said block portion through the slot in said container, whereby said follower may be manually moved away from the open end of said con- 'tainer;` a compression spring coiled about said guide bar and acting between a portion of said container opposite said open end `and the bottom of the counterbore in the block portion of said follower to urge said follower to- Vward said open end; manually operable means mounted adjacent said open end of said container and movable i tainer into the magazine.

7 A device for loading cartridges into an elongate tubular magazine, said device Vcomprising an elongate hollow container having an open end and having a longitudinally extending slot therein along one side, said container having a substantially T-shaped guideway adapted to sldably accommodate a column of generally parallel cartridges; a guide rod mounted within said container and extending substantially parallel to said guideway between said guideway and the one side of said container; a follower sldably mounted for longitudinal movement within said container toward and away from said open end, said follower having a cartridge-engaging portion extending within said guideway, an apertured counterbored block portion disposed between said guideway and the one side of said container and sldably mounted on said guide bar, and a protuberant portion extending outwardly from said enlarged portion through the slot in said container, whereby said `:follower may be manually moved away from the open end of said container; a compression spring coiled about said guide bar and acting between a portion of said container opposite said open end and the bottom of the counterbore in the block portion of said follower to urge said follower toward said open end; trigger means4 for selectively and sequentially discharging the cartridges from said guideway, said trigger means including a vmanually operable lever member mounted on said container adjacent said open end, said lever member having a rst portion extending outwardly from said container and a second `portion extending within said container and movable within said guideway intoand out "of the path of the cartridge-engaging portion of said follower, and a spring member urging the second portion of said lever member into the path of said follower to prevent the discharge of cartridges from said guideway, and means on said container adjacent said open end for .removably attaching said container to the magazine,

whereby the cartridges may be sequentially discharged from the container into the magazine.`

8. A device for loading cartridges into an elongate tubular magazine, said device comprising an elongate hollow container having an open end and having a lonl gitudinally extending slot therein along one side, said container having a substantially T-shaped guideway adapted to sldably accommodate a column of generally parallel cartridges; a guide rod mounted within said container and extending substantially parallel to said ,guideway between said guideway and the one side of said container;` a follower sldably mounted for longitudinal movement within said container toward and away from said open end,` said follower having a cartridge-engaging portion extending within said guideway, an apertured counterbored block portion disposed between said guideway and ther-one side of said container and sldably mounted on said guide bar, and a protuberant portion extending outwardly from said block portion through the slot in said container, whereby Said follower may be manually moved away from the open end of said container; a compression spring coiled about said` guide bar and acting between a portion of said container opposite the open end thereof and the bottom of the counterbore in the block portion of said follower to urge said follower toward said open end; triggermeans for selectively and sequentially discharging the cartridges from said guideway, said trigger means including a manually operable lever member mounted on said container adjacent said open end, said lever member having a rst portion extendingoutwardly from said container anda second portion extending within said container and movable within said `guideway into and out of the path of the `cartridge-engaging portion of saidfollower, and a spring member urging the second portion of said lever mem- Vber into -the-path of said follower to prevent the disv)portion is inserted within the magazine the open end of the container will abut the exterior of the magazine and the container will be mounted for the discharge of t cartridges therefrom into the magazine.

9. The structure of claim 8 wherein locking means is provided to lselectively maintain said follower in position spaced from the open end of said container.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Phillips July 17, 1900 Bengston Feb. 16, 1909 McPheters July 2, 1946 Capito Nov. 17, 1953 Hill Dec. 11, 1956 

